kota Doria - A light weighted and greatly weaved fabric

Introduction  

Kota Doria is really comfortable, beautiful, and breezy fabric which you can wear during summers. You can’t compare this fabric with other. In the scorching summer, Kota Doria is very lightweight and comfortable fabric which you can carry it easily. This fabric makes you look adorable. Kota Doria is a blend of cotton & silk, which doesn’t harass your skin.

 Origin and history  

Kota Doria first originated in Mysore where the weavers who practiced this craft were known as ‘Masurias’. Subsequently between 17th and 18th century, the weavers were brought to Kota by Rao Kishore Singh who was a general in the Mughal Army during Shahjahan’s reign. The union between the two states brought about the invention of the ‘Kota-Masuria’ sarees, which were adorned for religious occasions since this type of material was considered auspicious. This type of saree became extremely popular and paved the way for the Kota Doria cloth. 

Sources of Inspiration 

The Rajasthani royalty favored this fabric since it portrayed effortless grace and style. The sarees were mostly white or beige in color. However, with recent changes and modifications being made to the fabric, endless amounts of color, and adornments of all kinds are included as well. Initially, the fabric was only made up of cotton, but later silk was weaved in as well, which made it more chic and refined. 

Varieties 

Kota Doria sarees and suits are available in 3 different styles: basic, printed and zari. This makes it a versatile fabric since it can be worn for either a casual or a dressy occasion. The plain sarees have checks that are mainly made of a slightly rough cotton texture or just plain gold threads. Block printing is one of the new techniques being used when it comes to adorning Kota Doria sarees, which gives it a fresh feel look. And last but definitely not the least, is the zari work which gives the saree a more graceful and stylish appearance. 

technique of production  

Kota doria saree is woven on a traditional throw shuttle pit loom in such a fashion that it creates small square check pattern in the fabric, locally called as Khat by putting the cotton and silk yarns in different densities both in the warp and weft directions. In a good quality Kota doria saree, there are about 300 to 350 ‘Khat’ across the width of the fabric. Design is developed by jala/ jacquard system. Pure zari is used in border and buti woven on extra weft designing technique. 

Interesting Facts  

Onion and water paste is used as one of the raw materials to strengthen the yarn of the fabric. 

The word ‘Doria’ basically means thread. 

Since the fabric is woven on authentic and traditional handlooms, one can notice the uneven edges at the ends of the fabric. 

Present Day Scenario 

In spite of the declining trend in manufacturing this fabric, there are close to 2500 families in various districts of Kota who are still practicing and keeping this skill alive. Even though there are some who appreciate the value and hard work that goes into this type of weaving, there has not been a great demand for it either. 

Future  

The future lies in the fact that handlooms should provide exclusive fabric meant for high couture, which constitutes for high-end market. Product diversification and skill up gradation is the main theme for growth. It is clear that weavers should not produce low-priced fabrics which can easily be formed by power loom. They have to produce exclusive varieties, which are impossible to produce in the power loom; that's good money at the same time. 

Conclusion  

At the winding up of the swot analysis of kota doria, it is imperative that customers are still being deceived by substandard power loom stuff. Poor awareness for hand-woven fabric, its hallmark and GI patent in consumers. The prime focal point is boosting consciousness in consumers regarding kota doria. The Government needs to put a pro-active measure to protect this heritage. The support from the government in terms of different schemes for technology up gradation and other financial support are required to improve the life of weavers in this area. There is a great need to improve and expand the marketing facilitated of the handloom products. 

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